. Bright sandy shores gave place to a parched sort of
greenery, as it looked, with large buildings here and there; the town
beyond lay terraced on rising ground, its square monotonous buildings hot
in the sun, whose fervour the roofs returned in dazzling mirror-glare.
The spires and minarets of its more pretentious architecture, something
scantily, relieved the greyness of the formal rows, barracks, warehouses
and whatever else. Farther on a rough squat cone of barren-looking
ground surmounted with another heavy square-cut building caught but
scarcely charmed the eye. As the heat was dreary, so at a casual glance
through the smouldering air this town of flat roofs and tiers.

Hosea, very smart, with his telescope under his arm, and the second mate
beside him, stood on the bridge. Hosea was giving orders, the second mate
passing them on to the engineer below on the ringing telegraph, and by
megaphone to Meacock, who with the carpenter stood to the anchor forward.
Flags were run up announcing the _Bonadventure_. No answer, in the form
of a launch, was vouchsafed so early, although other ships moored round
about us were being visited by agents or doctors. The word was given
to let go the anchor. "Forty-five on the windlass!" The cumbrous chain
unwound and ran down with a cloud of rust. The _Bonadventure_ lay still,
even the cocoa-like mud which her propeller had been diffusing in a few
moments thinning away.

A gangway was let down over the side. Firemen and engineers came up
from the underworld and all--not only the passenger--looked towards a
motor launch which now appeared making swiftly towards us. She was tied
up a moment later with ropes at the foot of the gangway, and an Englishman
emerging from her small beautifully polished saloon, asked in supercilious
fashion for the captain. "Come aboard." "No, I can't," Hosea stalked
forth with successful dignity, as if unaware that anyone should be
calling; then, going back for the ship's papers, boarded the launch, and
we heard that we were going on to Buenos Aires. The papers were quickly
seen and restored; letters--general gloom!--were absent, probably with
some other agents; and the launch and the young man in his beautiful
suit, raiment for a diplomat, departed.

We stayed here at anchor through the afternoon; telescopes sprang up on
all sides, even if to unacquainted, non-cubist eyes the view was rather
interesting than pleasing. Every half-hour or so, some tramp would